Duality
by Specialist7
Summary: Mirta lived a relatively normal life, studing at Alfea and working at a barber shop in Magix. That was untill the day she met her arch-nemisis.
1. Just another day

The work day was coming to an end and the activity in the centre of Magix was winding down to a close. Most of the shops and restaurants were beginning to close, even though it was about half an hour before the end of the official work program.

It was a good thing too, especially for Mirta who was vacuuming the floor of the barber shop she worked in. She was starting to get a hang of the job, but in reality it was just a secondary option for her. A back-up plan in case she didn't become a full fledged fairy.

Lately though, her dream of becoming one seemed more and more distant. This wasn't because of school, but rather the rough shape she was in. This was a mystery to her because no matter how much sleep she was getting, she still woke up feeling tired and worn-out.

Of course, she visited the school doctors and had numerous tests done to find a cause for the way she was feeling, but nothing really concrete turned up. Aside from the fact that she needed to eat more fruits and vegetables there was really nothing wrong with her. According to them, she was pretty much normal. If that was the case though, than why did she feel so drained? If this kept up, she would have to retire from school and seek some serious medical attention.

Her thoughts on the subject however, were interrupted by a loud ding. It was the bell that was mounted at the entrance door. It indicated the entry of a new customer. Turning to meet the new patron, she saw a young girl, about the same height as her.

She had long curly hair that reached down to the top of her shoulders. It had a striking blue colour to it that Mirta found somehow familiar. She wore a plain black T-shirt and long dark red cargo pants of a boot cut shape. Looking down at her feet the young witch turned fairy noticed a pair of white sneakers in the feet of the newly arrived client.

"Hi." the blue haired girl said as she began to look around the salon.

"Hey there." Mirta replied with a smile. "Can I help you with anything?"

Aside from them, the shop was empty and for once, the former witch was glad someone paid a visit to it. Not one person had come in all afternoon and she was beginning to feel a bit lonely since the owner of the store had left her in charge for the day on account of some pressing business she had to take care of.

"Yea, I need a haircut. Nothing fancy." the other girl said in a slightly demanding tone. "This is a barber shop right?"

"Yes, that's right." Mirta answered. "How short would you like me to cut your hair?"

"About this much." the consumer responded as she raised her hand to a level just above the top of her neck.

Looking just overtop the position that the young customer shower her, Mirta began to look at the other girl's eyes. They looked to have the same shade of colour as her own. Sensing this, the girl turned her eye sight to meet Mirta's. This made the Alfea student slightly timid, and as a result she turned her head slightly in order to break eye contact.

"Alright, well, have a seat." she told the patron, pointing at a one of the chairs in the salon.

The other girl did as was requested of her and Mirta moved in behind her to tie a black apron around her neck.

"I'm Mirta by the way." the red head declared, trying to start a conversation.

From the mirror in front of them, she could see the expression on the client's face turn into a grin as she answered back.

"My name's Atrim. Pleased to meet you...Mirta."

The moment she heard the name a momentary chill gripped her. She ignored it and quickly returned to the task of cutting the other girl's hair. The tonality in which she said it however, made her feel once more a certain déjà vu towards the girl in the barber's chair. As if she had heard this name a long time ago, but could not recall under what context.

"So, uhh, I hope you don't mind me asking but, what do you do?" asked Mirta, hoping that the extra information would help ameliorate her déjà vu feeling.

"Well, nothing really. I'm kind of a freelancer. Don't really have a steady job or school or anything. I travel around realms, do various jobs, meet various people. All I'm really concerned with is surviving." she replied.

"Doesn't that seem scary at all?" the former Cloud Tower student enquired. Atrim's answer had really perked her interest.

"Yea, sometimes. It's pretty rare though. I really don't have anything that anyone could really want." she paused for a moment and adjusted her eye sight to meet her reflection dead on in the mirror before continuing. "It's only when we've lost everything that we're free to do anything."

She blinked a few times, relaxing herself before carrying on with her statement. "Besides, it's worked out well so far. I may not live in luxury, but once in a while I get to enjoy a haircut like this. It really makes you appreciate it that much more you know." she concluded.

Mirta couldn't help but agree with her on this topic and began to nod ever so slightly in agreeance. She herself had to work hard in order to get to where she is now, unlike some of the princesses at Alfea, who had virtually everything they wanted, served on a silver platter.

* * *

The two of them remained silent while the former witch continued her work on Atrim's hair. Only after Mirta showed her the completed hair cut with a second mirror behind her head, was the silence in the room broken.

"There. All done. What do you think?" the words reverberated.

"Nice. I like it." the customer replied, and after a small pause she continued: "So what about you? Aside from working here, do you do anything else?"

"Well, I'm also studying at Alfea. I'm trying to become a fairy." came the response.

"Ahh, so you go to Alfea, the famous fairy school. I'm sure you've got your reasons for doing that, but if you ask me, fairies and witches aren't all that useful in today's world." the blue haired girl divulged.

"So what, you think the world would be better off without witches and fairies?" Mirta replied in a passive aggressive tone, feeling that this was the real subject Atrim wanted to approach.

"Yea, I do. Look at some of the magical energies they have. Some can heal and create vast lengths of swamp and forest; others have enough power to destroy entire realms. Because of that they're always battling each other, and its innocent people who get caught in the middle and suffer because of them. Don't you think so?" Atrim explained.

"Well, if you put it that way, then yes I do... but it's not like we can anything do about it. It's just the world we live in." the barber shop employee answered as she removed the apron around shopper's neck.

"Maybe it is, but I'm not going to sit by idly and watch this vicious cycle go on and on. I'm going to do something about it." the barber shop patron resolved, removing some coins from her the right pocket of her pants and placing them on the counter in front of her.

The automatic question came next. "Really? What exactly?"

"It's a bit complicated and don't have the time to explain it right now, but if you want to talk about the subject some more or if you ever need anything... "

The blue haired girl removed a pen from one of her back pockets and grabbing a tissue from a box on the same counter where she left the coins, began to scribble down some notes.

"...give me a call and we can meet up." she finished her phrase, handing Mirta the tissue.

Glancing at it, the Alfea student could see a name and a phone number written at the centre of the paper handkerchief.

"Thanks." she quickly replied.

"No problem. Well, I gotta run. I'll see you around." The other girl responded, and before Mirta could say another word, she dashed out through the same door from which she entered.

The red haired fairy was left with a very surprised look on her face. Everything about this last customer was off. Her back story didn't seem to add up. A girl that travels around various realms, working various jobs and still manages to afford nice clothes, haircuts and even a phone! The fact that she felt a sense of familiarity toward her didn't help much either. It wasn't in her nature to do this, but she decided to keep some tabs on this girl. As such she neatly folded the handkerchief and placed it in the interior pocket of her vest.

Looking at the large clock that was hanging on the wall to her right, she could see that it was now closing time. Happily carrying on the regular procedure for closing, she boarded the last shuttle that would take her back to Alfea, where she would try to catch up on some much needed sleep.


	2. Alfea in flames!

The shuttle came to a halt right outside the gates of the school and opened its doors widely. Mirta was the only one left on the bus. Everyone else had gotten off at earlier stops. The driver had been unsure if there was anyone on board that actually wanted to go as far as Alfea. He was prepared to head back to the garage, had Mirta not stepped forward to explain her situation.

There was a big concert at Red Fountain that day and the entire school had been invited. It had been the talk of the school all last week. The driver had been informed of this, hence his confusion. Mirta was the only girl in the school who couldn't go to the concert. I'm sure you can imagine her frustration when she found out her work schedule for that particular day. Still there was nothing she could do to get off work earlier or anyone she could trade shifts with.

She had gotten over it though, on account of her fatigue. Really the last thing she felt like doing that day was dancing. She stepped off the bus and the large gate that allowed entry to the school opened in front of her. The bus left a few moments later, with a loud roar. Almost as if the driver was glad he didn't have to spend another second in that place.

Without any issues, Mirta proceeded to her now empty dorm room and quickly got into bed. She closed her eyes and after a while she began to feel slightly more relaxed. It didn't take long and her mind to ease up, allowing her to fall asleep. Maybe this time she was actually going to get some real rest. At least that was what she hoped for as she dozed off.

* * *

_...she moved through the rooms swiftly and efficiently, checking to see if there might still be someone in the school... _

_...not finding anyone, she quickly headed toward the main hall, doing all she could to maintain her momentum..._

_...in far the right corner, she uncovered a set of loose floor boards; a secret stash..._

_...she removed a set of jars, some of them labelled..._

_...nitric acid..._

_...glycerol..._

_...and an empty glass jar..._

_...taking a few breaths she slowly poured the two chemicals into the empty jar..._

_...pouring the last drops of the mixture onto one of the tables, she carefully placed the jar down beside her... _

_...she checked the time on one of the clocks in the room..._

_...closing her eyes she started to concentrate and began chanting an incantation of sorts..._

_...holding out her right hand she opened her eyes to reveal a blue flame emanating from her palm..._

_...with a slight flinch she threw the flame in front of her... _

_...immediately turning around, she ran as fast as she could..._

_...a loud bang resonated through the air..._

_...she made it nearly half way through the courtyard before she began to feel it..._

_..."_No! Not now!_" she thought as she collapsed..._

* * *

A random swirl of cold air made its way across the semi-circle yard in front of the school. It began to chill the area, reducing its temperature to below that of a normal human's tolerance. This created a stimulating effect on the body of a young girl that was sleeping in the area. It became too much for her to ignore and thus, she began to regain partial conciseness and cuddled herself in a fetal position, in an attempt to keep warm.

This motion however, brought a sharp change of brightness to her vision. Once again she was inconvenienced and began to adjust herself in other positions to continue her rest. None of them seemed to work however.

Finally with a large degree of sluggishness, she decided to wake up. She cracked open her eyes, allowing them several minutes to adjust to the light in the area. Then, at long last, with great effort, she opened them completely and began examining the scene that took place around her.

Fire! The entire administration building had been completely razed and was now surrounded by bright red flames. The fire had gone out of control and had also begun to spread to the dormitories. It would soon burn down the whole school if left to itself.

Mirta began to panic. The images her eyes perceived began to send adrenaline throughout her body, giving her an excess of energy. It was time for action! She transformed in her fairy form and started to fly around the school in order to gain a better understanding of the situation.

It didn't take long for her to realize that things were far more severe than she had anticipated. Terror began to fill her once more, and a sense of helplessness subsided over her. She now understood that even with all the power she could muster, it wouldn't be enough to extinguish the fire all on her own. There was only one thing left she could possibly do to save the school.

Using all her energy she began to fly in the direction a triangular set of flashing yellow lights. Her only hope was that she could reach Faragonda and the others in time. It was all up to her, she though. She would determine the fate of the school. These thoughts gave her a greater sense of urgency, as well as an elevated motivation, allowing her fly at a higher speed than before.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Special thanks to Robert Teague for his research on the layout of the Alfea College for Fairies.


End file.
